Shloka 16
Vasiṣṭha–Karāla-Janaka Saṃvāda: Aśuddha-Sevana, Guṇa-Dr̥ṣṭi, and Sāṃkhya–Yoga Ekārthatā
Mahābhārata 12.293
जो राजा धर्मपूर्वक प्रजाकी रक्षा करता है
yo rājā dharmapūrvakaṁ prajāyāḥ rakṣāṁ karoti, sa tasya dharmācaraṇasyaiva kāraṇāl loke pūjito bhavati. evaṁ yaḥ brāhmaṇo dharmapūrvakaṁ svādhyāyaṁ karoti, yaś ca vaiśyo dharmānusāreṇa dhanopārjane tatparo bhavati, yaś ca śūdro jitendriyabhāvena sthitvā sarvadā dvijātīnāṁ sevāṁ karoti, te sarve sva-sva-dharmācaraṇakāraṇāl loke sammānitā bhavanti. narendra, viparītam ācaran sarve svadharmād bhraśyanti. prāṇasaṁtāpanirdiṣṭāḥ kākiṇyo ’pi mahāphalāḥ; nyāyenopārjitā dattāḥ, kim utānyāḥ sahasraśaḥ.
波罗舍罗说：国王若依正法护持臣民，正因其正行而为世人所敬。同样，婆罗门若依正法修习圣典自学（svādhyāya），吠舍若依正法勤求财利，首陀罗若制御诸根、恒常侍奉二生者（dvija）——各各皆因恪守本分而为社会所尊。噫，人中之主！若反其道而行，众人便从自身之法而堕。纵使仅有少许迦吉尼（kākiṇī）钱币——以正当之道所得，虽劳苦至几伤性命——若以之布施，亦能结大果；何况其余诸物，成千上万而施者，其果报更不待言。
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Social honor and spiritual merit arise from faithfully performing one’s own dharma: the king by protection, the brāhmaṇa by sacred study, the vaiśya by lawful wealth-making, and the śūdra by disciplined service. Even a tiny gift becomes highly meritorious when earned justly and given rightly.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct, Parāśara addresses a king (narendra), outlining how each social role is validated by dharmic action and warning that contrary behavior causes a fall from svadharma; he then emphasizes the superior fruit of charity made from honestly earned resources, even if the amount is small.